SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. — Lake Tahoe faces critical fire danger to start the week and then temperatures will drop to well below average by Wednesday, weather officials announced Monday.

The National Weather Service in Reno issued red flag warnings for Sunday and Monday due to gusty winds and low humidity. Monday’s warning is in effect from noon to 11 p.m.

The service also issued a lake wind advisory Sunday night that is in effect from noon to 9 p.m. on Monday.

With wind gusts expected to reach up to 35 mph and up to 45 mph for wind prone areas, the lake will be rough, including waves up to 3 feet.

Officials said the combination of low humidity, which is in the 10 to 20% at Tahoe, and high winds can result in a fire that can quickly grow in size.

A low pressure system is dropping south along the west coast that will bring windy conditions through mid week and a cooling trend will continue with highs dropping to 10-15 degrees below average by Wednesday.

The service said critical fire danger may continue in some areas on Tuesday, but daytime humidities are still expected to trend slowly upward as the trough approaches closer and brings much cooler temperatures to the region.

The service said many areas were in red flag conditions for several hours on Sunday where wins reached up to 45 mph.

Monday’s high is expected to reach into the high 60s with an overnight low of 41.

Tuesday’s high plummets about 10 degrees with an overnight low of about 36.

On Wednesday the temperature reaches its low point for the week with highs of about 55 and the lows below freezing.

The temps are expected to start creeping back up to about 60 on Thursday and high 60s and sunny skies for the weekend.